The ramblings of a trail and road runner dealing with the craziness of life

Monday, April 23, 2012

Heat training, gear testing

Training this weekend did not live up to my goals but next weekend will be different. I took it easy during the week to give my knee time to feel better and I focused on stretching my hip flexors thinking that may help. The plan for Saturday was to do an 8 hour run; however, as the forecast got less running-friendly, I wondered if we would make it 8 hours. I decided to set up a race simulation; we took ice, "ultra" food (pb&j, orange slices, bananas) and bandanas and I picked a flat, mostly dirt trail (Santiago Creek Trail) that connects Irvine Regional Park to Santiago Oaks Park. We parked so that we had easy access to the car and I showed Alan the 3 mile loop.

I was using the run as a way to test out my new CW-X 3/4 length Pro tights and Hokas. We decided to take it very easy and work with the heat. After the first couple of loops, we parted ways and I decided to venture off the loop through some cool single track areas. My knee and hip were okay and I cruised along making sure to keep my pace very slow. I planned on heading to the car every 6 miles to put ice in the bandana and fill up my water bottle with ice and water. I am bad about nutrition so I focused on taking a salt pill every hour, drinking water, and eating. I discovered that I love Honey Stinger Organic Chews...so yummy and I feel good about eating them since they are organic and I've discovered my body processes real sugar better than the crap in other energy sources.

As the heat intensified (upper 80s in the shade/felt like 90s due to clear skies), I also felt my hip and knee bugging. Around mile 19 for me, I felt the knee pain kicking in and decided to spend most of the next hours walking. Oddly, my calves were feeling very heavy. I wondered if it was because I
skipped on the calf compression so I decided to put those on the next time I went to the car.

I caught up to Alan and decided to do the loop with him; his back was hurting during the week and it was starting to bother him so we made the decision to call it after the loop. It's a good thing I was with him because I saw the biggest snake I've seen in years; thankfully, I was ahead of Alan because he hates snakes and I had him stop before he could even see the snake crossing the path. That solidified our plan to end early. By the time I got back to the car, my calves were aching so much that it hurt to walk. It took a half hour of propping up my legs before the swelling and pain subsided. I realized that the tights may be so snug that they cut off circulation in my lower leg...I definitely need to figure out if wearing calf compression plus the tights rectifies that issue. I love how the tights feel on my hips and knee but may have been better off buying the full ones instead of the 3/4.

Mileage tally for the day was only 24.:( But I felt great during a short run on Sunday, so I know next weekend holds promise for training and I can't wait.